Sean Payton, the new head coach of the Denver Broncos and ex head coach of the New Orleans Saints, said in a rare interview with USA Today that the team’s previous coach and staff had performed “one of the worst coaching jobs in the history of the NFL.”
Payton, who was hired by the Broncos this past summer, spoke out against Nathaniel Hackett and other former head coaches. After a 4-11 record under his leadership the previous season, Hackett was fired by the team.
The 59-year-old was open about his disdain for the team’s previous coaches and how they handled quarterback Russell Wilson the previous season.
“There’s 20 dirty hands, for what was allowed, tolerated in the fricking training rooms, the meeting rooms,” Payton told USA Today Thursday.
“I don’t know Hackett. A lot of people had dirt on their hands. It wasn’t just Russell. He didn’t just flip. He still has it. This B.S. that he hit a wall? Shoot, they couldn’t get a play in. They were 29th in the league in pre-snap penalties on both sides of the ball.”
In his first season in Denver, Wilson, a nine-time Pro Bowler and Super Bowl XLVIII champion, had a career-worst season with 16 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, and only 3,524 yards passing.
“There’s 20 dirty hands, for what was allowed, tolerated in the fricking training rooms, the meeting rooms,” Payton told USA Today Thursday.
“I don’t know Hackett. A lot of people had dirt on their hands. It wasn’t just Russell. He didn’t just flip. He still has it. This B.S. that he hit a wall? Shoot, they couldn’t get a play in. They were 29th in the league in pre-snap penalties on both sides of the ball.”
The Broncos have been contacted by CNN for comment.
In the coaching community of the NFL, Payton’s scathing criticism of a rival coach is unusual.
The New York Jets, who hired Hackett as their offensive coordinator during the previous summer, were the target of his criticism. After acquiring Aaron Rodgers, a four-time MVP, in a trade, the Jets enjoyed a successful offseason. Most recently, they were chosen to appear in the five-part HBO and NFL Films documentary “Hard Knocks.”
Payton believes that despite the Jets’ significant additions and extensive media coverage, the team will fall short of expectations.
“We’re not doing any of that,” Payton declared. “This year, the Jets did that. You observe. Hard Knocks in its entirety. I predict its arrival.
The remarks were addressed by Jets head coach Robert Saleh on Thursday at a press conference at training camp. According to Saleh, Payton is free to say “whatever the hell he wants.”
“I kind of live by a saying: ‘If you ain’t got no haters, you ain’t popping.’ So hate away,” Saleh said. “Obviously, we’re doing something right if you’ve gotta talk about us when we don’t play you until week 4 and I’m good with it. The guys in the locker room, they’ve earned everything that’s coming to them and really excited about what’s going on.”
In week 5, the Jets will take on the Broncos at Denver.
Saleh also praised Hackett’s performance thus far with the Jets, calling him “phenomenal.”
“We are focused on us. I get it, there’s a lot of external noise, there’s a lot of people who are hating on us. There are a lot of people looking at us to fail,” Saleh continued. “There’s a lot of crows pecking at our neck but all you could do is spread your wings and keep flying high until those crows fall off and suffocate from the inability to breathe.”
Payton has coached the New Orleans Saints for 15 years and has enjoyed great success in the NFL. He nine times took the team to the playoffs and won the Super Bowl in 2010.
Payton retired as the head coach of the New Orleans Saints after the 2021 season and worked as a broadcaster the previous year. He was signed by the Broncos in February following a disastrous 5-12 campaign.
After a league investigation revealed the Saints operated an “active bounty program” during the 2009, 2010 and 2011 seasons, Payton was given a season-long, unpaid suspension in 2012. Players received “bounty” rewards for hits that injured opponents and forced them out of the game.
